1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an improvement in a fishing reel having a centrifugal brake unit utilizing centrifugal force for applying braking force to the rotation of a spool rotatably supported by a reel body.
2. Related Art
There have already been proposed centrifugal brake units so designed as to be able to regulate braking force in response to the condition of the fishing place in, for example, Japanese Utility Model Registrations No. 2, 538, 904 and No. 2, 535, 505.
The former (Japanese Utility Model Registration No. 2, 538, 904) is arranged such that a lever-like member is provided in the end portion of a spool shaft and directed radially; a plastic cylindrical braking piece is externally slidably fitted to the lever-like body; a metal cylindrical frictional member is disposed outside the rotational locus of the braking piece and formed into a centrifugal type; an inner peripheral face that the braking piece of the friction member contact is made to have axially different inner peripheral diameters or have different frictional coefficients; the frictional member is externally operated to be axially movable so as to adjust the braking force. On the other hand, the latter (Japanese Utility Model Registrations No. 2, 535, 505) is arranged so that the contact of a braking piece with respect to a frictional member may be turned ON/OFF by selectively regulating the movement of the braking piece.
In the former case, the problem is that the radially movable braking piece falls out diametrically onto the lever-like body during the work of detaching the spool from the reel body, and may be lost when the frictional member is moved through the external operation, the braking piece moves unstably and comes to contact with the frictional member, thus resulting in making the adjusting operation impossible.
As the braking piece also comes to contact the frictional member during the casting operation in the low-speed rotational range of the spool when the braking force is almost unnecessary, the former case is not fit for a short casting operation.
In the latter case, the problem is that no delicate adjustment is possible and because the brake block is designed to be selectively brought into contact with and separated from brake shoes, while the selective operation is conducted in the contact condition, braking is applied in the low-speed rotational range of the spool when the braking force is almost unnecessary, and in the separated condition, fishing is carried out while no braking is applied even though an attempt is made to actuate the braking force.
Problems to be Solved by the Invention exist in the fact that in the former case the stable casting performance is unobtainable in the low-speed rotational range of the spool and that in the latter case no delicate adjustment is possible as well as making it necessary to select either applying the braking or entirely applying no braking.
An object of the present invention in view of the foregoing problems is to provide a fishing reel which is capable of delicately adjusting braking force using centrifugal force but designed to apply no braking force in the low-speed rotational range of a spool.
In order to solve the foregoing problems according to the present invention, a fishing reel includes:
a reel body;
a spool rotatably supported by the reel body;
a support member integrally rotatable with the spool;
at least one braking member supported by the support member and movable in radial direction with respect to the support member;
an annular braking surface provided at the reel body, adapted to cover an outer periphery of the support member, movable with respect to the support member in an axial direction and having different frictional characteristic in the axial direction;
an urging member which urges the at least one braking member in a separating direction which the at least one braking member is separated from the annular braking surface, wherein the at least one braking member is brought into slidable contact with the annular braking face against urging force of the urging member by centrifugal force produced by a rotation of the spool;
a regulating member provided at outside of the reel body for moving the annular braking surface in the axial direction.
According to the present invention, wherein the urging force of the braking member can be adjustable.
According to the present invention, as it is unnecessary to apply braking in the low-speed rotational range of a spool, excellent spool free rotation is available so that fishing tackles may be played out toward a desired point, thus facilitating short casting. At the same time, as braking force is adjustable through operation from the outside to broadly deal with the condition of a fishing place.
According to the present invention, as braking force is adjustable internally and externally by making the urging force of a braking member operated by centrifugal force, the braking force can delicately adjusted. Further, a suitable spool braking operation corresponding to various circumstances becomes possible.